Equal Footing
by LeftPawedPolarBear
Summary: (LBD Universe) Four years after the events of the video diaries, Lizzie and Darcy take some big steps towards starting their lives together.
1. Chapter 1

He's ashamed to admit how long it actually took him to notice that something is wrong.

Granted, Lizzie was always very careful to keep work life and personal life as separate as possible. At first it was rather difficult; Lizzie was firm in her refusal to be handed a job at Pemberley on a silver platter, but that didn't mean she wasn't willing to accept some help in the embryonic stages of her company's development. In fact, the first months of their relationship were filled with more business and less romance than William might have liked, but he was patient and supportive and as helpful as he could possibly be, because he knew that the sooner Mansfield Media got on its feet, the sooner their lives could truly begin.

It was quite possible, William reflected, that Lizzie had noticed his slight impatience (although he tried hard to hide it—Lizzie had enough to worry about without fearing he didn't support her) and perhaps that was why as soon as Mansfield Media began consistently making profit (right after their one-year anniversary,) Lizzie had laid down the line between work and home.

"We can ask each about our day, and mope and moan as much as we like, but I forbid discussions about investors that go past names and annoying quirks."

William, though happy that their time spent together would no longer be filled with teleconferences and quarterly reviews, was suddenly overcome with a wave of disappointment. He had grown used to spending both his free hours and his work hours with Lizzie—more than anything it was what had made it feel like he belonged in her life, and that she wanted to spend time with him as much as he wanted to spend time with her. Nevertheless, it was their one-year anniversary, and William decided that on their anniversaries Lizzie's word was law. So he smiled and pulled her into his arms for a kiss.

"I'd like that very much."

Still, after knowing and loving Lizzie for over four years, he should have picked up on _something_. He should have realized she was coming home past 7 o'clock every night, more often then not on the phone with either her secretary or one of her investors. He should have noticed how quiet she had become on their lunch dates when they met at a coffee shop in the middle of the day because they couldn't stand being apart for a full workday. He should have seen how long she spent on the phone every night with either Jane or Lydia or Charlotte, or sometimes all three. He should have noticed _something_.

It didn't help that when he finally did realize something was wrong, Lizzie stubbornly refused to share.

"Lizzie, something is going on. What can I do to help?"

"Nothing, William. You are wonderful, and I love you, and you don't need to help me with this."

"Lizzie, is it something at Mansfield Media? And investor that is giving you a hard time? And employee? A competing company?"

"Shh, William," she said, leaning over and kissing his nose lightly, "no work-talk at the dinner table."

"Lizzie, you've been acting off for weeks now. Can you please tell me what's going on?"

"Shh, no work-talk in the bedroom."

And then she would kiss him gently and somehow, wonderfully, even after over four years of kisses and caresses, it would still make him forget about everything else that was going on and the world around him would disappear—what could possibly be wrong when he had Lizzie?

But something was wrong, and he finally got it out of her by threatening to buy her a huge sapphire necklace as an anniversary/29th birthday present to match the dress Jane had given her when she turned. She sighed, then turned to face him and laced her hands around his neck before saying, "Ok, fine. You win. Something is wrong." Her grip tightened, sending a shiver down William's spin as he fought to concentrate on her words instead of her hands. "But William you have to promise me something."

"Anything."

"I've seen you play the superhero. I've seen you spring into action when a villain appears and spend sleepless night working tirelessly until he has been vanquished. But William, this is _my_ problem. And just because I'm telling you about it doesn't mean I want help solving it. Agreed?"

"Agreed. But Lizzie, now you're making me nervous." Reluctantly, he reached up and took her hands, holding them in his own. "Please tell me what's wrong?"

Lizzie grimaced. "Well, I suppose you could say I've…hit a glass ceiling."

"How do you mean?"

She rubbed her temples. "It might take some time to explain, William. Are you sure you want to hear this?"

He laughed in disbelief. "Elizabeth Bennet, you can't be serious! You have a problem you need to deal with and, if I remember correctly, I believe we decided several years ago that your problems are my problems, and vice versa. Now I don't mean I'm going to wrest control from you and solve everything myself," he continued, silencing the protest he saw in her eyes, "but I want to be there for you. Please let me be there for you."

She paused, and then nodded slowly. "So what do you mean by a glass ceiling?" he asked again.

"Do you remember a year ago, when I signed the deal with that guy from England who had patented a new type of gel touch-screen for phones?"

"Of course. That was an incredible deal. You even broke your own rule to tell me about it."

Lizzie grinned at the slight dig, but the smile quickly faded. "Well…that guy is my most recent investor."

"You mean you haven't had a new investor in…" William pulled out his calendar and did some quick calculations, "…fifteen months? Lizzie how is that possible? Mansfield Media is doing incredibly well!"

"Yes, it really is! Mansfield Media is still going strong. The problem is, it hasn't gotten any _stronger_ in over a year. Apparently, I've reached the point where my company can no longer expand."

William shook his head. "I still don't understand how that is possible. Despite its success in the past four years, Mansfield Media is still only around one-fifth the size of Pemberley Digital, and Pemberley still manages to improve profit by an average of 20% each year—" He stopped abruptly, and Lizzie winced in anticipation of what she knew was coming next. Her boyfriend was a smart man. He was going to figure it out eventually.

"Lizzie…is Pemberley stealing all of your potential investors?"


	2. Chapter 2

"Well, I wouldn't call it _stealing_ if you genuinely deserve them…"

"Lizzie! Stop it. Stop making it seem like this isn't my fault." He started pacing angrily. "I should have transferred more of my clients from the beginning. And there are at least half a dozen big investors I could have sent your way over the past year. Why didn't I think? Why didn't I—"

"William Darcy, if you say one more word I will walk out of that door and not come back." The determined look in her eyes told him she was serious—of course she was serious, she wouldn't joke about leaving him, not after everything they had been through—so he obediently shut his mouth. Internally, however, the monologue continued. _I could have helped. I could have _helped_._

Relieved that he had stopped, Lizzie took his hands in hers once again. "You see? This is why I didn't tell you before; because I knew exactly how you would respond. First, you would blame yourself. Then you would insist on fixing everything on your own because you feel obligated. But William, when are you ever going to learn that that is _never_ what I want?"

He smiled gently. "When am I going to learn? Lizzie, it's the very reason I love you so much. Sometimes I simply get a bit carried away trying to make you feel the same way."

"Well, that's one thing you never have to worry about." She rested her head against his chest, and William thought briefly of the ring he had been keeping in his office safe for the past several months. But now wasn't a good time. He would have to be patient again, as he waited for the next chapter in their lives to begin.

"So, what are you going to do?" he asked.

"I'm going to be honest with you, William, as my boyfriend, but also as my fellow businessman. Mansfield Media has certain things over Pemberley Digital. We are much more intimate. Our creative department is ranked number one in the country, and Pemberley is ranked number three. But the fact of the matter is that Pemberley's history and reliability trumps those things almost every time. And frankly, there is nothing I can do about it."

"I could still send you some cli—"

"No, William. I refuse to ride the coattails of your more established and successful company. I will not be a charity case."

"So there's absolutely _nothing_ I can do?" He could see her patience was wearing thing, but he couldn't help but ask one last time.

Lizzie touched his cheek and smiled faintly. "No, I don't think so. But if I think of anything, I promise I will come straight to you. No more hiding. Okay?"

"Okay."

...

...

...

"Lizzie, I have an idea."

"Is it a place for dinner tonight? Because we haven't eaten out in over two weeks and I love you, but I could use some—"

"It's about Mansfield Media."

"Oh."

They were sitting in a café approximately halfway between Pemberley and Mansfield (Lizzie argued that it was a closer drive for William because of traffic patterns, but if it was a choice between driving and not seeing him, she wasn't going to complain.) It had been two weeks since their conversation, and Lizzie had not mentioned her troubles since, but she was coming home more tired and stressed out than ever. Nevertheless, William had been careful to wait until their daily lunch break together to bring up his idea, because he knew she wouldn't listen to a word of it if they were at home.

Even so, she grimaced and said, "You know, I love these lunches because they are a _break_ from work. But," she said, silencing the protest forming on his lips, "you were probably right in thinking I would refuse to hear _anything_ about this at home. You were right, William. I shouldn't have kept this from you."

Taking courage from her smile, he took a deep breath and continued. "Lizzie Bennet, I would like to offer you a business opportunity."

Lizzie scrutinized him for a moment, taken aback by his formal tone. "William Darcy, I was under the impression you were my boyfriend, not my business associate."

William shrugged, ignoring the little dance his heart still did whenever Lizzie called him her boyfriend. "Who says I can't be both? You're a CEO, I'm a CEO, with deal in _extremely_ similar things." He sighed. "Will you at least hear my proposition?"

"I'm all ears."

"About three weeks ago, I was approached by a woman named Mrs. Woodhouse about a potential business venture. She wants to take a classic novel and retail tell it in a modern setting through a series of video diaries, and she wanted Pemberley's expertise. It would be a long-term project—the video diaries need to be planned, cast, and filmed, not to mention sufficiently advertised, and Mrs. Woodhouse wants them to last for over a year, but after careful the executive board of Pemberley Digital has decided to partner with Mrs. Woodhouse. She has spearheaded some very successful projects in the part and, well," William smiled, "Let's just say she has the money to back this one."

"That sounds like wonderful news William…" Lizzie looked confused. "But what does it have to do with me?"

"Ah. Well, over the course of our negotiations with Mrs. Woodhouse, it became clear that she had seriously considered going to Mansfield Media with her project. She liked the small, intimate atmosphere at Mansfield, and she is aware of your own _personal_ experience with video blogging."

Lizzie winced. Part of the reason she had ended her video diaries was because she was nervous about people judging her as the person has had been at the inception of her vlogs—much the same way she had prejudged certain people she was now quite friendly with. Part of her wondered if one of the reasons Mrs. Woodhouse hadn't decided to make her offer to Mansfield had been hesitation to deal with the Lizzie she had seen onscreen.

William, too caught up in his scheme—which she was still aching to hear—took no noticed of her discomfort, and pressed on. "Ultimately, she decided that her concept was risky enough that she was more interested in advertising and reliability than the best possible quality, and she instead brought her offer to Pemberley Digital. However," he continued, excitement bright in his blue eyes, "what if I told you the executive team at Pemberley—of which I am, of course, the head—was willing to _collaborate_ with Mansfield Media on the project? Mansfield covers the creative aspect, and Pemberley works out the logistics? We both play to our strengths and _everyone_ is happy?"

"You—you want to collaborate? Mansfield and Pemberley, working on the same project?" Lizzie worked to keep her face emotionless, but William saw a glimmer of his own excitement reflected in her eyes.

"Mrs. Woodhouse has already approved the idea, we are just waiting on confirmation from the head of Mansfield Media. Which would be you."

"Collaborate with Pemberley Digital…" Lizzie repeated the phrase slowly, testing it out. "William…" her face broke into a grin. "I think that's a wonderful idea! I mean, you're absolutely right—it's perfect! We both do what we're best at, we both get the business and the publicity; it's a win-win-win!"

She leaned over the table to plant a kiss on his cheek. "When can we start?"

...

**Notes: Thank you guys so much for all of your reviews and kind words! I am so sorry I couldn't get this up sooner; I have a rather busy couple of months coming up, but I will try to finish this as soon as I can! I predict 2-3 more chapters, and the next one is almost finished already, so it should be up soon!**

**-LeftPawedPolarBear**


	3. Chapter 3

Working with Lizzie was one of the strangest things William had ever done.

It was also absolutely wonderful.

It took him a little while to see it that way, though. As excited as he was for the project to begin, William did not look toward the upcoming months without trepidation. Although it was difficult to admit at times, Lizzie did have several valid reasons for keeping their work life and home life separate, and working _together_ could very easily be the worst decision they had ever made. What if they had nothing to talk about when they got home? What if their mutually competitive natures made it impossible to collaborate amicably? What if the deal went sour? What if the deal didn't go sour…but they did? "Trepidation" was putting it mildly; some nights William went to sleep convinced that they should call everything off first thing in the morning.

And even once the project had begun, although none of William's fears actually came to pass, there were several things that took some getting used to. The first was Mrs. Woodhouse. After a month's worth of meetings with her, it became clear that the woman was what Jane would call "a little snippy" and what Lizzie _did_ call "a grumpy old shrew." For a woman with such romantic notions about new and innovative uses for the Internet, she was much more of a Katherina than a Juliet. Nevertheless, she was smart, she was shrewd, and she was filthy rich, and with Lizzie at his side William was prepared to put up with almost anything.

The second thing that took some getting used to was the project. Great Expectations, the novel Mrs. Woodhouse had chosen to adapt, was not short—Dickens never was. Pemberley Digital had undertaken creative projects before, but never to this degree. Despite having been in the business for ten years, William was exploring new territory.

Which was directly related to the third thing: Lizzie herself. He noticed it the first time they had an official meeting about the project. It was a small group, just Mrs. Woodhouse, William and his four top advisors, and Lizzie and her number two, Mr. Musgrove. They met in a boardroom at Pemberley Digital, Lizzie coming straight from Mansfield where she had had some business to take care of earlier in the morning. As soon as she walked through the door, William, who had been chatting idly with his CFO with his back to the door, felt the energy in the room shift. He sensed her presence before he even saw her. He turned to face her, felt his eyes follow her as she walked briskly to her seat, and in the periphery of his vision he saw his advisors watching her, intently. She flashed them a winning smile. "So," she said, "let's get down to business, shall we?"

She sounded like his Lizzie. She looked like his Lizzie. She had the same auburn hair, the same piercing eyes, the same small, petite frame. But this wasn't the same Lizzie that came home to him every night. This was Elizabeth Bennet, CEO of Mansfield Media—and she was downright formidable.

Without really meaning to, William let Lizzie take control of the meeting. They decided on a schedule, a budget, a plan for divvying up the work, and for the first time ever, William sat back and let someone else do the talking. Eventually, he would begin to interject with his own ideas and suggestions, but for now he was content to let Lizzie do what Lizzie did best: make people listen.

This was entirely different, William saw, from those first months of Mansfield Media's existence, when William had patiently walked Lizzie through the beginnings of owning and managing a company. Then, William had been the teacher and Lizzie had been the student. Now, sitting across from each other at the conference table, they could meet each other's eyes. They were partners—equals.

But it was so much more than that. Every day, even on the days when they had joint meetings or teleconferences, even on the days when they spent _hours_ on the phone, arguing about props and deadlines and camera placement, William would walk through the front door of their house at six o'clock and start preparing dinner, and approximately forty-five minutes later Lizzie—_his _Lizzie—would walk through the same door, pull the pins out of her hair, plant a kiss on his cheek, and plop herself down on the stool next to the stove so she could keep him company while he made whatever pasta or casserole he had planned for dinner. No matter had happened at work that day, how many tense or angry words they had exchanged, when they walked through that door they ceased to be Mr. Darcy and Ms. Bennet, CEOs and formidable businesspeople. They were William and Lizzie, two intelligent, hardworking people who loved each other to the ends of the earth and who wanted nothing more than to have a quiet dinner together before falling asleep in each other's arms.

They had, William realized, become his own parents. And the thought was perfect, terrifying, wonderful, and unfathomably sad, all at the same time.

As their final farewell to Mrs. Woodhouse drew nearer, William began to look on the upcoming months with trepidation once again, though for very different reasons. What would happen, now that they were no longer going to be spending nearly every waking moment together? How would Mansfield Media fare after this project ended?

When he confessed his fears to Lizzie, she had smiled reached up to kiss his nose. "William, don't be ridiculous. I love you, you love me, and we are only going back to the way things used to be. It's not the end of the world, you know."

"I know, but…"

"But what?"

He sighed and pulled her into his arms, "But I'll miss you," he mumbled against the top of her head. He barely caught her reply, muffled against his chest.

"I'll miss you too."

**...**

**...**

**Notes: ****I hope this chapter turned out ok. It's a bit shorter than the others and it didn't really flow as well as the two previous chapter (or the next one *wink wink*). Still, it moves the story along, and hopefully the next one will be better!**


	4. Chapter 4

After the final episode was released and the final bottle of champagne was popped, William and Lizzie slowly settled back into their old routine. They would go their separate ways in the morning, reunite briefly for lunch, then separate again until the end of the day when they would relax into each other's company; they would talk, wind down, eat dinner, collapse into bed together, but pointedly stay away from the subject of digital media and investors.

In fact, neither of them mentioned their year-long collaboration in more than passing for almost four months. Pemberley Digital continued to grow, increasing profits steadily by 20% every quarter, while Mansfield Media—though Lizzie wouldn't say it out loud—fell back into its slump. But when Lizzie walked through the front door sixteen weeks after they had said goodbye to Mrs. Woodhouse for good, it was a testament to the time they had spent in the business world together that William knew immediately something was going on. Most days, when Lizzie came home from work she was happy, but fatigued, eager to kick off her heels and change into what she considered "real clothes." That day, however, she walked through the door and straight to the desk where he was sitting, taking a break from his seemingly endless pile of work to complete the daily cryptic crossword. She didn't even take off her heels; she stood there, back straight, hair still pinned up neatly in a bun, with a large manila envelope in her hand.

"Mr. Darcy, I have a proposition for you."

He looked up, studying her. Normally, when she called him "Mr. Darcy" she was teasing him for his overly formal behavior, but she didn't seem to be in a joking mood. "A proposition, Ms. Bennet?" He stood up and faced her, dimly aware of how sloppy he looked with his sleeves rolled up and tie hanging loose around his neck, compared to her crisp, put-together figure. "May I ask what kind of proposition?" he inquired.

"I want to offer you my company."

Well. That had certainly not been what he had been expecting. "You want me to…what?" He was fumbling over words in a way that would have embarrassed any self-respecting businessman discussing an important deal. But was Lizzie really offering to _sell her company_?

"I want you to buy my company. That's what you do, isn't it? Buy companies to solve problems?" She smiled, somehow appearing taller than her five feet four inches, and suddenly he knew that this was CEO Lizzie—Business Lizzie.

Still, he hesitated. "Lizzie, buying Novelty Exposures was the most sensible way to prevent that tape from being released. I don't like to make a habit out of—putting my money where my mouth is, so to speak. Why…why do you want me to buy your company?"

"Well, not _buy_ it, exactly. More like absorb it."

Lizzie began to pace slowly, her hands behind her back. William felt his eyes follow her, and he couldn't help but be impressed by how easily she commanded his attention without even having to touch him. "I've given this a lot of thought. I have taken into consideration the dilemma facing my own company, as well as the possible harms and benefits for your company. I considered the well being of my employees. And I have come to the conclusion that this would only stand to benefit everyone involved. I have even drawn up a plan of integration." She held up the envelope.

Fighting to keep a blank expression as he held back his linger shock William gestured, indicating he wanted to see the envelope. She placed it on the table and slid it over to him—William almost laughed at the excess professionalism displayed in this single movement, but he realized Lizzie probably wouldn't appreciate the humor. This was an extremely important decision for her, and the future of her career quite likely rested on how he received her proposition—it was no time for jokes.

He opened the envelope. The first glance told him how long she must have worked on this, eliminating any remaining doubts about whether or not she was serious.

"Lizzie," he said, skimming the first pages, "this looks incredible. And you're right. If we handle this correctly, Pemberley Digital could only stand to gain from absorbing Mansfield Media. But…"

"But…" she said, urging him to continue.

He set the papers down on the table. "But five years ago, when I offered you a job at Pemberley Digital, you refused. You refused because you had your sights set higher, and you refused to be a charity case. And a year and a half ago, you refused my help getting your company out of its slump. So why are you doing this now? Why do I feel like this is you giving in?"

Lizzie shook her head. "You misunderstand my motives, William. Five years ago, I was barely out of grad school, without a job, with a family that could barely support me, and dreams far too large for my head. I refused you then because I knew that if I accepted, I would never feel like any of my successes were my own doing. I stand by that decision, and I would make it again. And when you offered to give me clients, I refused because even though my successes up until this point have been my own, I still don't like being handed things on a silver platter.

"But this," she gestured toward the envelope, "this is different. I'm a different person now. I've seen what it's like working with Pemberley Digital. I've even seen how my own employees fit in at your company. Plus, I've seen what we can accomplish together and, well, I don't want to stop." She smiled, and William had to remind himself that they were still talking about business.

Lizzie came towards him, placing her hands over his on the sheaf of paper. He liked the way it looked—their hands joined over the document that contained their future. "So this is me, Elizabeth Bennet, CEO of Mansfield Media, looking ahead and realizing that if I want to continue to have my own successes and continue to contribute to the field I am so passionate about, this is the best way to do it." She smiled. "I did always want to work at Pemberley Digital, and now maybe I can. Only this way we'll be on a bit more…equal…footing."

William gazed at her, awed and entranced by her passion and hope. "I love you so much."

"Is that a yes?"

"Let's get to work."

...

**Notes: I could probably end this right now, but I have a plot bunny that's been jumping around, begging me to write one more chapter. What do you guys think? And any critiques or reviews are welcome as well!**


	5. Chapter 5

"Ms. Bennet, I have a proposition for you."

He got down on one knee.

...

**Notes: I'm **_**really**_** sorry I couldn't finish this off with a full-length chapter, I have so much work in the next couple of weeks that I probably won't be able to write anything new until the summer. Still, I didn't want to leave you with nothing, so I hope you enjoyed this little send-off I gave them. **

**Additionally, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH for reading and commenting. Seriously. It means so much to me. This is my second fanfiction ever, and it was genuinely terrifying when I first published this, putting myself at the mercy of LBD fans who were as passionate about the series as I was. So to have such positive responses is absolutely incredible, and I cannot thank you enough.**


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